Xinhua Silk Road: Shanghai enhances int'l shipping center construction with transformative efforts

BEIJING, Oct. 22, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Shanghai is making steady progress in its drive to become an international shipping center, narrowing the gap with Singapore and London through transformative development efforts.

After the 2025 North Bund Forum opened on Sunday and brought together shipping experts from around the world, the eastern Chinese metropolis is once again in the spotlight for its expanding high-end shipping services and strengthened global connections.

From "an old wharf" to "a base of headquarters of shipping businesses", the city's North Bund took another stride forward, building up a complete industrial chain for high-end shipping services.

By the end of 2024, the North Bund's shipping service cluster was home to more than 4,600 related businesses.

In recent years, Shanghai has also promoted the parallel development of both ad hoc and institutional arbitration.

In May, the North Bund International Legal Service Port was launched. Through service integration and cooperation with local maritime arbitrators, a full-cycle ecosystem for shipping legal services has taken shape there.

As for financial service, China Shipowners Mutual Assurance Association (CSA) -- China's largest P&I insurer that moved to North Bund in 2017.

In the past two years, traditional European mainstream shipping operators including CMA CGM and Alberta Shipmanagement Ltd. have joined the CSA, reflecting the increasing influence of the association in global shipping market.

In July, China Classification Society announced the operation of its international ship inspection business in Shanghai.

Song Baoru, Party chief of Shanghai Maritime University said the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025) witnessed a shift from basic completion to comprehensive completion of Shanghai international shipping center construction.

Alongside the clustering of shipping-related financial, legal, arbitration and other high added-value services and the establishment of innovation mechanisms, Shanghai international shipping services are likely to improve further.

So far this year, Shanghai has established sister-port relations with Haropa Port in France and deepened its friendly ties with the port of Los Angeles, speeding up two-way cooperation with global partners.

Apart from the first MoU between International Maritime Organization and a local government, the membership of CSA in the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), the inauguration of an ICS representative office in Shanghai and more partnerships with global ports are pointing to Shanghai's closer connections and green cooperation with the global shipping industry.

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